Since the declaration of the state of emergency, HOUYHNHNM's editorial office has also been working hard in its daily operations under the recommendation of telework. . However, it is true that we have more free time than when we are in the office. So, this time, we would like to introduce what the HOUYHNHNM editorial staff is addicted to while teleworking. Each editorial staff member will describe what they are doing at home secretly during working hours, which is difficult to do when they are in the office and cannot be seen from the Zoom monitor.
Edited by Ryo Muramatsu
What is Rakugo Tachikawa Style?
It has been a year and a half since I got into rakugo. . Actually, I had never heard of the Tachikawa school until recently. . The reason for this is that it does not appear at the regular yose theater in Tokyo. I followed only the popular comical storytellers who appeared there, such as Shunputei Ichinosuke, Yanagiya Kyotaro, and so on. This situation changed last fall. I happened to pick up an essay by Tachikawa Danshun, "Aka Medaka" (2015, Fusosha Bunko). It was an unabashedly honest account of his life from the time he first entered Danshi Tachikawa's school to the time he became a rakugo performer, and I read it in one sitting without thinking. He is said to be one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Tachikawa school and is famous for not being able to get tickets, but after reading the book, I was extremely lucky to be able to go to his solo performance. The program was "Benshichi Genkai. The program was "Bunshichi Genkai," a masterpiece of winter human-interest rakugo as well as "Shibahama," and as I was watching his true-to-life rakugo, I was moved to tears without any reason.
Since then, my interest has been exclusively in the Tachikawa school! . . but due to a coronavirus, the solo performance by Shira Tachikawa, for which I finally managed to get a ticket, has been postponed until six months later. . I have been reading books on Danshi Tachikawa and Shiraku Tachikawa as a way to relieve my sorrow.
The book that really caught my attention was "Jinsei, Hariwake - Danshi Ichidai Ki" (2008, Shincho Bunko, bottom right in the photo). The book was compiled by Ushio Yoshikawa, an entertainment critic and advisor to the Tachikawa school, who interviewed Danshi and described in his own words his memories of his master, Kosan Yanagiya, his reasons for becoming a politician, the episode in which he resigned after only one month as vice minister of the Okinawa Development Agency, the founding of the Tachikawa school of Rakugo, and many other milestones in his life. In his own words, Danshi described these milestones. On the other hand, in his main job, Danshi transcended rakugo forms and techniques, daring to perform poorly and incompletely, or getting too emotionally involved with the characters in the middle of a story and saying things that were not in the lines, and changing the direction impromptu. He was so invested in the characters that he said things that were not in his lines, and then improvised to change the direction of the story. At the same time, I felt a lifelong regret. . . to have never been able to see Danshi in person.
Shincho-Bunko, "Life, Itsukari - Danshi Ichidai-" (Life, Itsukari - Danshi Ichidai-)
www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/134335
Yosuke Ishii, Deputy Editor
AKIRA is not the only masterpiece, read Otomo manga in one place.
With a new anime adaptation project of "AKIRA" and the announcement of the production of the new theatrical anime "ORBITAL ERA", this is an opportunity to review and read a summary of Katsuhiro Otomo's past works, which are now attracting renewed attention from the year of AKIRA in 2019.
The first book I picked up was "Dome". The realistic backgrounds are meticulously drawn, and the frame layout is full of a sense of speed. The composition, which changes with each cut, gives the impression of being shot with telephoto or wide-angle lenses, giving the viewer a realistic feeling of being in the middle of a movie. Personally, I believe that the key to Otomo's manga lies in this "movement" rather than in the story, and "Dome" is a work in which this can be fully appreciated. The level of expression in the manga is exceptional. For example, there is a famous scene in which a person is pushed against a wall by an invisible force and slams into the wall like a sphere, and it is said that this scene was the first depiction of this "power of chi. Without this invention, the Genki Ball in "Dragon Ball" might not have been created.
Speaking of SF works, check out the 1979 work "Fire-ball" included in the short story collection "Her Memories..." in the flow. It is said that the ideas for "Akira" and "Dome" were born from this work, which is a kind of seed of Otomo's science fiction. Although the work was never completed, it is a very valuable source material, as glimpses of Otomo's later SF can be seen in its settings and worldview. There are many other SF short stories in "Her Memories...", so you can't miss them.
Katsuhiro Otomo has a strong image of science fiction, but his short story collection "SNS Tokyo Tankentai" contains many works such as girls' manga, westerns, and four-panel comic strips. Although not well known, he is surprisingly prolific. This may be the reason why he is still revered as a legendary manga artist. Tezuka Osamu and other legends of the past have all been prolific.
I've finished reading all the comics I have and the Otomo fever has been rekindled. . There are still a few comics I don't have yet, so I'll have to go to Nakano Broadway to DIG when the situation is over. . It's just a shame that they are out of print and pre-priced....
AKIRA" 4K Remaster Official Website
v-storage.bnarts.jp/sp-site/akira/
Deputy Editor, Hiroshi Yamamoto
I watched the drama "The Flash/ The Flash"!
I had never been in the habit of watching dramas in the first place, so I thought I would never watch them even if I subscribed to Netflix or Prime Video, but I quickly finished "The Walking Dead," "The Naked Director," "Paper House," and others. The speedy tempo of the drama, the intricate and detailed storyline that is only possible because of the length of the drama, and the beautifully executed second half that recovers the foreshadowing of the first half, all these tricks kept the viewer hooked, and in no time at all I was hooked.
As I start my telework life, I am watching "The Flash," a popular American drama series based on DC Comics, on the right side of my monitor while typing this article. It is a very simple action hero drama in which the main character is only fast on his feet, but because it is so simple, the story gets more and more intricate, and the foreshadowing near the end of each episode is just superb. I was tempted to click the "watch next episode" button every time an episode came to an end, and I watched almost endlessly. I finished watching all 23 episodes of season 1 in 3 days.
Incidentally, "The Flash" has aired up to Season 6, and Season 7 is in the works. A film adaptation is also planned for 2022. There seems to be a long way to go. To be honest, I am not sure if I am watching it because it is really interesting or if I am just curious about the foreshadowing, but I think it is a good time to watch it all at once.
Amazon Prime｜The Flash
amzn.to/3aF91XE
Ryo Komuta, Editor-in-Chief
Love the flowers , love the fragrance.
Kacho-fu-getsu," as they say in Japanese, is a word that has been attracting my interest recently. Especially in Kamakura, the sky is clearly more beautiful than in Tokyo, so the stars and the moon are clearly visible to the naked eye. When I come home in the middle of the night, I look up at the sky and say, "Oh, the moon is so beautiful..." If the era were any other era, I would confess my love to the sky.
So, I have recently become a little interested in flowers, but I am not brave enough to go straight to fresh flowers, so I have been enjoying dried flowers first. I have recently been using the "Plantaholic Diffuser" from "The Landscapers," which is made of dried flowers and imbued with fragrance.
. I work remotely and spend a lot of time at home, so scent is a very important factor. This is an excellent product that can be displayed as dried flowers even after the fragrance wears off.Lots of variety.. so you can choose the one you prefer.
The Landscapers
store.landscapers.com/items/19501663
This is "What our editorial staff secretly does while teleworking . Part 2". From rakugo to manga, TV dramas, and even dried flowers, we hope that these things, which are not easy to do in our busy days, have given you some hints on how to spend your long hours at home in a comfortable and enjoyable way. The days are still uncertain, but it is time to make the most of them!
